Botanic Garden >> Gardening > >> Question and Answer >> Soil Issues

Dogs and Heat Make Grass Impossible: Switch to Thorny Shrubs

4 dogs, intense afternoon sun, rocky clay soil = no grass. Compaction + acidic urine kill turf. Prepare soil well, plant large thorny shrubs to deter dogs. Monitor water religiously for a full year—one dry spell kills new plants.

Soil Issues: First-Time Homeowner Lawn Fix: Soil Test First, Then Fine Fescue for Shade; Fixing Bare Spots Under Trees: Soil Prep and Shade-Tolerant Grass; Growing St. Augustine in a Narrow, Shady Clay Yard in California; Dog Urine on Sun Impatiens: Saving the Plant and Dog-Proofing the Garden; Why Full-Sun Container Annuals Become Leggy and Dry; Drought-Resistant Perennial Ground Covers for Sandy Cape Cod Soil: Bearberry and Black-Eyed Susan; Organic Crabgrass Control and Dog Urine Spot Management; Renovating a Maryland Tall Fescue Lawn: Organic Soil Building for Weed and Bare Spot Recovery; Love-in-a-Mist (Nigella damascena and cultivars); Trees for Wet and Damp Soil Conditions

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